C‑SPAN has sent a letter to House and Senate leaders asking that negotiations on the health care bill be open to cameras. News reports indicate that the leadership is considering bypassing a formal conference committee in resolving differences between House and Senate versions of the legislation. Identical bills must pass each chamber before a final bill can be sent to the President.

DETROIT – General Motors says its December sales were down 10 percent and off 33 percent for 2009, a year that saw the top U.S. automaker go through bankrutpcy court and industry sales drop to the worst level in nearly 30 years.

The troubled automaker faltered even as crosstown rival Ford Motor Co. reported a 33 percent sales jump last month and a 15-percent decline for the year. Chrysler sales slipped 4 percent in December but it suffered through its worst sales year since 1962.

Nissan sales climbed 18 percent for the month but fell 19 percent for the year.

GM and Chrysler are trying to recover from summertime stints in Chapter 11 and bad publicity over taking government aid.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

DETROIT (AP) — Big automakers are glad to see the end of 2009, the worst year for U.S. sales in nearly 30 years.

Ford and Chrysler both saw sharp declines, but each claimed to have momentum going into this year. Subaru, however, said last year was an unqualified success.

It was a tough year for the industry, as credit froze, the economy and consumer confidence faltered and unemployment rose. U.S. sales for the full-year are expected to be their worst since 1982.

Chrysler Group LLC posted its worst sales in 47 years, selling just over 931,000 cars and trucks. It was the first time sales dropped below 1 million since 1962.

But its December sales rose 36 percent over November, showing signs of some progress at showrooms but also helped by less-profitable sales to fleets such a rental companies and municipalities. Compared with December of 2008, monthly sales slipped just 4 percent, a far smaller drop than the double-digit declines seen for most of the year.

Ford Motor Co. said full-year sales declined 15 percent, but the company said it posted its first full-year gain in U.S. market share since 1995. It also reported a 33 percent increase in December sales thanks to strong demand for midsize cars like the Ford Fusion, whose sales rose 83 percent. The Ford Escape crossover, meanwhile, rose 75 percent.

Japanese automaker Nissan reported an 18-percent rise in December sales from the same month a year earlier, thanks on higher sales of its Versa compact car. But for the year, sales dropped 19 percent. Subaru of America Inc., said 2009 sales rose 15 percent and December sales climbed 33 percent, ending a year the company said was its best ever for sales and market share.

General Motors, Toyota, Hyundai and others will report December and full-year sales figures later Tuesday.

The auto industry underwent a radical transformation in 2009, one of the most turmoil-filled years in its more than 100-year history.

Chrysler and General Motors, which both filed for bankruptcy protection after nearly collapsing, are still suffering as they struggle to revive sales and pay back huge government loans. Ford has been a relative bright spot, but also needs sales to pick up this year.

Total U.S. auto sales, reported later Tuesday, are expected to drop to levels not seen for three decades. Joblessness climbed over 10 percent and buyers stayed away from showrooms, worried that automakers like GM and Chrysler might not survive. The last time sales were so low was in 1982, when 10.5 million cars sold during another bad recession.

Last summer, the government’s Cash for Clunkers program eased the pain by reviving sales with $2.85 billion in government-backed rebates. Americans responded, buying nearly 700,000 vehicles. But for the most part, 2009 was a dismal year for new vehicles.

Meanwhile, China surpassed the United States as the largest auto market, with sales expected to top 12 million in 2009. Asian manufacturers like Hyundai surged by selling more affordable cars, though stalwart Toyota stumbled on factors like its biggest U.S. recall ever over accelerator problems.

Japan’s auto sales were equally poor last year. Sales declined to the lowest level in 38 years, falling to 2.9 million vehicles. But Germany, another major auto producer, said that car exports were up in the quarter and year as the effects of the economic downturn eased.

The U.S. will not transfer any detainees from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to Yemen right now, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Tuesday.

Ninety detainees in Gitmo are from Yemen, which is combating a resurgent Al Qaeda.

Alleged Christmas Day bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab is also said to have gotten training in Yemen before carrying explosives on a Northwest flight from Amsterdam to Detroit. His attempt to detonate the bomb was foiled when his device malfunctioned and he was tackled by a passenger.

“One of the very first things Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula used as a tool was Gitmo,” Gibbs said. “We’re not going to make transfers to a country like Yemen that they’re not capable of handling (the detainees). While we remain committed to closing the detention facility, the determination has been made that right now any additional transfers to Yemen is not a good idea.”

The announcement comes as President Obama misses his original deadline for closing the facility — a pledge he made on his first week in office.

Gibbs said court trials will begin for several individuals currently in Guantanamo Bay.

Sami, the public know what’s right and dumped Chevy for Ford. No one really bought Chrysler anyway. Companies are NOT to big to fail and they should have went bankrupt. Government’s best job is when the leave the F alone.

Foxwood says
Sami, the public know what’s right and dumped Chevy for Ford. No one really bought Chrysler anyway. Companies are NOT to big to fail and they should have went bankrupt. Government’s best job is when the leave the F alone.

Foxwood,

I personally have spoken with a couple of recent car buyers who also happen to be related to GM employee’s. This means they get the GM employee discount. They were both buying Fords and with out the benefit of the big GM discount. No one is going to trust a Government Run Auto Company and No One is going to trust this Government to run our Healthcare.

I’m surprised noone here has been talking about the double agent that blew up the CIA agents. That was a major boo boo for the CIA. The guy was trusted so much that he was let through the gates without a search? wtf?

this in today’s news:

Top intel officer slams work of U.S. spies in Afghanistan January 5, 2010 12:02 p.m. EST

Washington (CNN) — U.S. spies “can do little but shrug” when commanders ask for the information they need to fight the Taliban insurgency, the top U.S. military intelligence officer in Afghanistan said in a blistering report.

U.S. military intelligence officers in Afghanistan spend too much time focusing on enemy groups and tactics and not enough on trying to understand Afghanistan’s culture, people and networks, Maj. Gen. Michael Flynn wrote in a report published Monday.

American military intelligence gathering is “ignorant of local economics and landowners, hazy about who the powerbrokers are and how they might be influenced, incurious about the correlations between various development projects and levels of cooperation among villagers, and disengaged from people in the best position to find answers,” Flynn wrote

I worked for GM for the last 10 years so I can say this from my own experience.

The auto industry as a whole produced far to many vehicles for the intended market. To many manufacturers competing for the same customers.
Long story short the Big Co with the most overhead lost the biggest share of the market and whalla, they went broke.

This trend began shortly after 9/11/2001 and so did much of our economic problems. I see a connection there.

If you haven’t read “Three Cups of Tea” I recommend it. Of course, coming from me that would be a candidate for some other list prolly. But you will get a good understanding of the local politics in the mountains of Afghanistan and Pakistan. The author was a US mountain climber who lost his way and was helped by local Afghanis. He returned and helped to build secular schools to counter the schools of indoctrination, basketball courts and other bribes that the war lords and taliban provide in exchange for support. It’s a great read.

“I’m surprised noone here has been talking about the double agent that blew up the CIA agents. That was a major boo boo for the CIA. The guy was trusted so much that he was let through the gates without a search? wtf?”

okay guys, I changed my gravatar to a woman, Wild Rose O’Neal Greenhow. She may not be the sexiest, but what a woman! I am still waiting for my book about her in the mail. A confederate civil war spy. Trips to Europe. Dangerous ocean voyages. Romance. What a life!

Many Americans today say that it is Anti-American to profile people in order to protect our country. Absolutely No Profiling!

Pause a moment, to reflect back on these events from recent history.

Do you remember????

1. 1968 Bobby Kennedy was shot and killed by:
Muslim male extremist between the age of 17 and 40

2. In 1972 at the Munich Olympics,, 11 Israeli Olympic team members were take hostage then murdered by:
Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40

3. In 1979 at the US embassy in Iran , 53 Americans were held hostage for 444 days by:
Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40

4.During the 1980’s a number of Americans were kidnapped in Lebanon by:
Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17

5. In 1983, the US Marine barracks in Beirut , Lebanon was bombed and 220 US soldiers were murdered by:
Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40

6. In 1985 the cruise ship Achille Lauro was hijacked and a 70 year old American passenger was murdered and thrown overboard in his wheelchair by:
Muslim male extremist s mostly between the ages of 17 and 40

7. In 1985 TWA flight 847 was hijacked at Athens , and a US Navy diver trying to rescue passengers was murdered by:
Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40

8. In 1988, in the skies above Lockerbie , Scotland a bomb exploded aboard Pan Am flight 103 killing all 243 passengers and 16 crew members. Eleven people in Lockerbie below were also killed as large sections of the plane fell in and around the town, bringing total fatalities to 270: This bomb was placed on the aircraft by a:
Muslim male extremists between the ages of 17 and 40

9. In 1993 the World Trade Center was bombed the first time by:
Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40

10. In 1998, the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were simultaneously bombed killing 222 people and wounding over 4,000 by:
Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40

11. On 9/11/01, four US airliners were hijacked; two were used as missiles to take out the World Trade Centers and of the remaining two, one crashed into the US Pentagon and the other was diverted and crashed by the passengers. Thousands of people were killed by:
Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40

12. In 2002 Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl was kidnapped, tortured and beheaded with his brutal murder filmed and put on the internet by:
Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40

13. In 2004 Beslan , Russia an elementary school was siezed and 334 hostages were killed including 186 children by:
Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40.

14. In 2005 a series of coordinated suicide bomb attacks on London ‘s subway system killed 56 people. These attacks were carried out by:
Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40.

16. In 2009 at Ft. Hood Texas Army base 13 American soldiers were massacred by:
A Muslim male extremists between the ages of 17 and 40.

No, I really don’t see a pattern here to justify profiling, do you? So, to ensure we Americans never offend anyone, particularly fanatics intent on killing us, airport security screeners will no longer be allowed to profile certain people. They must
conduct random searches of 80-year-old women, little kids, airline pilots with proper identification, secret agents who are members of the President’s security detail, 85-year old Congressmen with metal hips, and Medal of Honor winner and former Governor Joe Foss, but leave Muslim Males between the ages 17 and 40 alone lest they be guilty of profiling.

Rosehips says
okay guys, I changed my gravatar to a woman, Wild Rose O’Neal Greenhow. She may not be the sexiest, but what a woman! I am still waiting for my book about her in the mail. A confederate civil war spy. Trips to Europe. Dangerous ocean voyages. Romance. What a life!

Rose,

She was just a gold digger who happened to die because her gold was too heavy and she drowned. lol. Enjoy the book.

“We did not connect the dots, but I will not tolerate finger pointing.”

Well, Mr Obutthole, Democraps and Lefty Lame Stream Media types, since the Constitution is still our law of the land, I WILL point fingers.

Let me see, didn’t the Lame Stream Media point the finger at Bush for 9/11 for not connecting the dots? Oh, don’t give me that bullsh!t. You held Bush directly responsible. WTF reason do you NOT hold Obutthole responsible for this “overseas contengency” that nearly happened on Christmas day? Could it be because you don’t give Democrap leaders the same standards you give Republican leaders? Could it be you hold a bias and you don’t want to see the failure of the coming Socialist/Communist rule and defeat of the Constitution?

Your leader is a complete and utter failure, unless by chance he does manage to push through his Communist plot, then I’ll give him some credit. You can be sure I will I will bust his balls at every opportunity, and fight to the death if this great country ever goes Socialist/Communist.

It has been a busy day and I am only here for a minute to tell you all that I love you. I have fired off a lot of short blogposts because I will be away from the computer all day. I have also been catching up on EVERYTHING.

Professor Joseph Olson of Hamline University School of Law, St. Paul , Minnesota , points out some interesting facts concerning last November’s Presidential election:

* Number of States won by: Obama: 19 McCain: 29
* Square miles of land won by: Obama: 580,000 McCain: 2,427,000

Population of counties won by: Obama: 127 million
McCain: 143 million
Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by:
Obama: 13.2 McCain: 2.1

Professor Olson adds: “In aggregate, the map of the territory McCain won was mostly the land owned by the taxpaying citizens of the country.

Obama territory mostly encompassed those citizens living in low income tenements and living off various forms of government welfare…”

Olson believes the United States is now somewhere between the “complacency and apathy” phase of Professor Tyler’s definition of democracy, with some forty percent of the nation’s population already having reached the “governmental dependency” phase.

If Congress grants amnesty and citizenship to twenty million criminal invaders called illegal’s and they vote, then we can say goodbye to the USA in fewer than five years.

If you can find any Billy Thorpe guitar other than “Children of the Sun” and solo, you have a gem. It’s hard to find today. But the 1980s show “War of the Worlds” has his music. He was in one of the shows. He was a guitarist that wass under the radar.

Just want to let you all know that my hip injury is coming along fine. It still hurts like hell but it is getting better every week. Thank God! I live in the USA with the best medical system on the planet. Thank you all for your well wishes and your prayers. God Bless You All!

Professor Joseph Olson of Hamline University School of Law, St. Paul , Minnesota , points out some interesting facts concerning last November’s Presidential election:

* Number of States won by: Obama: 19 McCain: 29
* Square miles of land won by: Obama: 580,000 McCain: 2,427,000

Population of counties won by: Obama: 127 million
McCain: 143 million
Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by:
Obama: 13.2 McCain: 2.1

Professor Olson adds: “In aggregate, the map of the territory McCain won was mostly the land owned by the taxpaying citizens of the country.

Obama territory mostly encompassed those citizens living in low income tenements and living off various forms of government welfare…”

Olson believes the United States is now somewhere between the “complacency and apathy” phase of Professor Tyler’s definition of democracy, with some forty percent of the nation’s population already having reached the “governmental dependency” phase.

If Congress grants amnesty and citizenship to twenty million criminal invaders called illegal’s and they vote, then we can say goodbye to the USA in fewer than five years.

RNC chairman doubts GOP will win back the House this November
By Bob Cusack – 01/05/10 08:18 AM ET

RNC Chairman Michael Steele said Monday night that he doesn’t think Republicans will win control of the House in 2010 .

Asked by Sean Hannity on the Fox News Channel whether he believes the GOP is going to take over the House, the chairman of the Republican National Committee responded, “Not this year.”

Pressed on his prediction, Steele later said, “I don’t know yet.”

Steele said, “We’re going to see, I think, nice pickups in the House,” but added it is difficult to provide a number because it is still early in the 2010 cycle.

Other Republicans, including House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (Va.) and House Chief Deputy Whip Kevin McCarthy (Calif.), have expressed more optimism about the chances the GOP will retake the lower chamber this year.

Hannity urged Steele on Monday night to draft a new Contract with America before the November elections.

Steele did not completely commit to a new contract, but said, “I think you’re going to a see a definitive document with clear definitions of who we are.”

January 6, 2010 in Nation/World
Mandated insurance has varied list of foes

WASHINGTON – If there is one thing in the proposed congressional health care overhaul that sets Michael Cannon’s libertarian teeth on edge, it’s the requirement that all Americans get health insurance.

“The federal government does not have the power to force you to purchase a private product,” said Cannon, a health policy analyst at the Cato Institute, a free-market think tank in Washington.

But with Congress poised to do just that, the mandate for near-universal coverage is generating opposition not only from libertarians like Cannon, who object to the guiding hand of government regulation in almost any form, but from some liberals as well – and even from some members of the insurance industry, which stands to gain millions of new customers.

The security breech that allowed a suicide bomber to kill 7 CIA agents is baffling. Imagine all the training, experience and vital information those 7 agents had compiled in their lives. Imagine what it will take to replace those 7 agents. This was a major foible. We cannot afford these kinds of mistakes…

Bomber had never been to base
Washington – The bomber who killed seven CIA officers at an agency forward base in Afghanistan had never been to the compound or met with agency operatives before the attack, U.S. officials said Tuesday.

The absence of any prior encounter adds to the confusion over how the attacker – posing as an informant with valuable information on al-Qaida – was able to make it past security with a bomb apparently strapped to his body and lure seasoned CIA operatives to their deaths last week.

A U.S. intelligence official said that the bomber had provided a stream of useful information to the CIA after being presented by the Jordanian intelligence service as an Islamic militant who had switched sides and was now willing to work against al-Qaida.

But the informant – a 36-year-old Jordanian physician – was still seen as an unproven asset by CIA officers.

DEARBORN, Mich. – At least nine Detroit area high school juniors are in trouble for wearing sweat shirts bearing a design that evokes the terrorist attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers.

The boys are Arab-American, as are about half the school’s 1,700 students. They belong to the 2011 class at Edsel Ford High School.

On the shirts, the number 11 resembles two buildings, with the school’s “Thunderbird” mascot flying toward them. Printed beneath are the words, “You can’t bring us down.”

WASHINGTON – President Obama and congressional Democratic leaders agreed Tuesday to bypass a conference committee and keep negotiations to reconcile the Senate and House health care reform bills a closed-door affair.

They concluded that the House will work off the Senate’s version, amend it and send it back to the Senate for final passage, according to a House leadership aide, speaking on condition of anonymity in order to discuss the private meeting.

Obama held an Oval Office meeting Tuesday evening with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and his No. 2, Sen. Dick Durbin joined in by phone.

Obama himself will take a hands-on role in the final health care talks, convening another meeting with congressional leaders at the White House on Wednesday, the aide said.

The aim is to get a final bill to Obama’s desk before the State of the Union policy address sometime in early February.
related links

*

Health Care Countdown: Young People Could Bear Brunt of Insurance Mandate

Democrats reacted defensively to criticism that they are taking the final, most crucial stage of the debate behind closed doors, contending they’ve conducted a transparent process with hundreds of public meetings and legislation posted online. Republicans seized on a newly released letter from the head of the C-SPAN network calling on congressional leaders to open the final talks to the public, and cited Obama’s campaign trail pledge to do just that.

Asked about that promise, Pelosi remarked, without elaboration: “There are a number of things he was for on the campaign trail.”

Facing the need to maintain a tenuous 60-vote coalition in the Senate, House Democrats likely will have to give up on starting a new government insurance plan to compete with the private market, something that’s a nonstarter with Senate moderates. In its place they hope for more generous subsidies for lower-income families to buy health insurance.

Obama agreed at Tuesday evening’s meeting to help strengthen affordability measures beyond what’s in the Senate bill, the aide said.

Pelosi suggested Tuesday that House members wouldn’t insist on the government plan as long as the final bill provides “affordability for the middle class, accountability for the insurance companies … accessibility by lowering cost at every stage.”

“There are other ways to do that, and we look forward to having those discussions,” she said.

House Democrats want the Senate to agree to language revoking insurers’ antitrust exemption as a way to hold insurance companies accountable in absence of direct government competition, said Rep. Chris Van Hollen, a member of the House leadership.

The bills passed by the House and Senate both would require nearly all Americans to get health insurance coverage and would provide subsidies for many who can’t afford the cost, but they differ on hundreds of details. Among them are whom to tax, how many people to cover, how to restrict taxpayer funding for abortion and whether illegal immigrants should be allowed to buy coverage in the new markets with their own money.

Concerns about affordability are paramount. Major subsidies under the bills wouldn’t start flowing to consumers until 2013 at the earliest. Even with federal aid, many families still would face substantial costs.

The House bill would provide $602 billion in subsidies from 2013-2019, covering an additional 36 million people.

The Senate bill would start the aid a year later, providing $436 billion in subsidies from 2014-2019, and reducing the number of uninsured by 31 million.

“Affordability is a critical issue,” Van Hollen said.

But sweetening the deal for low- and middle-income households could require more taxes to pay for additional subsidies. And the House and Senate are also at odds over whom to tax. The House wants to raise income taxes on individuals making more than $500,000 and couples over $1 million. The Senate would slap a new tax on high-cost insurance plans. Although the Obama administration supports the Senate’s insurance tax as a cost-saver, labor unions, which contribute heavily to Democratic candidates, are against it.

The House may end up accepting the insurance tax if it hits fewer people than the Senate’s design now calls for. There also could be common ground in a Senate proposal to raise Medicare payroll taxes on individuals making more than $200,000 and married couples over $250,000.

sami, another case of “damned if you don’t, damned if you do”… I think the kids are just being kids and trying to provoke authority. If they were ignored, it might be a non-issue. But if parents complain, if people are offended, or if it disrupts the classroom environment, the school has to respond.

So many of our youth are alienated and lack hope for their future. I imagine for Arab youth it can be even worse. No doubt more than a few radicals are developed in that environment. They don’t have to be poor and hungry. Just angry and disenfranchised.

sami said: The wearing of the shirts is RADICAL IN AND OF ITSELF! You just don’t get it do you?

Rosie says
sami, another case of “damned if you don’t, damned if you do”… I think the kids are just being kids and trying to provoke authority. If they were ignored, it might be a non-issue. But if parents complain, if people are offended, or if it disrupts the classroom environment, the school has to respond.

So many of our youth are alienated and lack hope for their future. I imagine for Arab youth it can be even worse. No doubt more than a few radicals are developed in that environment. They don’t have to be poor and hungry. Just angry and disenfranchised.

sami, I have not changed my tune. I still support universal health care. Medicine has gotten so expensive that there really is no silver bullet to solving this problem. I agree with tort reform but I’m not sure about setting limits for settlements. It’s a tough issue.
I’ve heard all the arguments against universal health care. I’ve heard about all the doctors who will leave our country in droves. I’ve heard about the wait lists, the deaths, the lack of adequate care, the death panels. I think it can be done better than the horror scenarios I have heard. It is not perfect but I think it’s the best.

sami said: Rose you seem to be changing your tune. I hope that is the case. There was a time when you argued for the “Uninsured Minority” in this country.